WITH THE BELIEF that a home is far more than a structure – it is the setting for how a family lives and grows – Stadler Custom Homes has been tailoring those settings for homeowners for over 20 years.

The company, founded in 1995, now delivers between 15 and 20 custom homes annually in the San Antonio region, and it has maintained the eye for detail and quality standards that helped build its reputation.

Making a home the perfect fit requires careful listening, President Ray Stadler says. That’s an area where the Stadler Custom Homes team has excelled.

“We spend a lot of time with the customer, trying to find out how they live their life, and how they see themselves living in the future,” he says. “How do we make the most of their property and take advantage of what the land has to offer?

“We simply ask a lot of questions,” he adds.

A Customer Focus

These days, with websites like Houzz, homeowners come in loaded with visual representations of what they’d like for each room. But that’s still just a starting point for the folks at Stadler Custom Homes.

“It makes it easier for us to, upfront, see what it is that they want,” he says. “The toughest part is the most important part. That is: What exactly do you like about the picture? It might be a picture of a living room – but what they really like is the fireplace.”

Those endless online options also often can push a project over budget, Stadler says. Managing those expectations – and offering options that achieve the same or similar results – is part of what the company envisions for its client friendly process.

With a triple “check-and-balance” system in place to provide continuous review of each home’s progress during each construction phase, details are covered and communication between builder and client stays open.

“You want them to enjoy the experience, feel like they were paid attention to and that somebody cared about how much money they spent,” Stadler says.

While many homeowners are leaning toward clean lines and fewer embellishments than homes of the past, Stadler says the company aims to provide truly custom projects – ones that reflect each homeowner’s unique styles and tastes.

One element that has become more important, Sales and Marketing Director Brad Bellamy says, is a need for homes that are more efficient.“We use high-quality products in our homes – tankless water heaters, open-cell foam insulation, etc. – but, the most important aspect in efficient building is making sure the right products are used in the right areas to provide a comfortable and

functional living space,” he says. “Each home is carefully looked at throughout the entire process to achieve efficient building.”

Homeowner priorities stay at the forefront through the process of creating a home that’s beautiful and functional, Bellamy says. That also requires relationship building.

“We make each homeowner feel a part of the Stadler family during and after the process,” he says. “Keeping them involved in the detailed process during construction is essential to making the home personalized to each homeowner. Also, unlike most custom home builders, our team is very involved from the initial design through construction. There are always multiple sets of eyes reviewing plans and walking each home.”

Modeling Community Service

In addition to considering homeowner desires, Stadler Custom Homes’ leadership team has been committed to responding to community needs.“The community that we live in has done a lot for us,” Stadler says. “We, on a regular basis, try to give back to those in need. The hope is we become part of a community where everybody helps each other.”

The company regularly works with The San Antonio Food Bank, American Diabetes Association, MS Society, The Battered Women’s Shelter, Any Baby Can Alliance and The Deaf and Hard of Hearing.

This year, the company took on a broad scope of work for the “Transformation Tour of Homes,” a fundraiser to benefit five local charities from the sale of casitas – small guest homes – that Stadler Custom Homes built in a luxurious master-plan development, Cascada at Canyon Lake. Stadler Custom Homes built four projects there, designed on 1 acre overlooking a canyon.

“Part of why we did that much is that we were hoping to try to encourage others to give back as well,” Stadler says.

While the company continues to enjoy success and growth with each new client, Stadler says the internal focus has shifted to offering more opportunities for dedicated employees.

“The thing we’re working on now is: How do we give an opportunity for those who want it in the organization and who exemplify the qualities we need to be able to have ownership over time?” he says. “We want to grow the company and allow the people in the organization who are capable to have some ownership if they want it. That’s one of the things that drives me to be the size we are. It gives others opportunities for work.”

Having the right people on the team have been integral to getting the long list of happy clients the company has enjoyed.

“What has helped us as a company be successful is a group of individuals willing to do good things for our clients and a relentless pursuit of trying to make our clients happy,” he says.